On November 10, 2023, the museum MAAT Lisbon organized the International Conference on Art and Health where Jasmina Ferček presented the research results conducted in the frame of BIEN 2023. The research poster on the impacts of creating with textiles in a community was selected on the international call for projects that lie at the intersection between art and medicine.
The research by Jasmina Ferček and Zala Orel is presented (in Slovene) in the manual "Textile Communities as Spaces of Power". The purpose of the manual is to present the benefits of textile creation for individuals and society. When manual work is a voluntary and leisure activity, it positively influences us and enhances the quality of our lives. Textile communities represent a source of knowledge to strengthen social systems (care, support, health, transitions, emancipation, etc.).
More info about the project: https://layer.si/bien/en/kr/empowering-textile-communities-and-their-social-impact/
BIEN Textile Culture is carried out in partnership by two non-governmental organizations, Carnica Institute from Kranj and Oloop Institute from Ljubljana. The program aims to strengthen knowledge and practices among individuals within the non-governmental, research, educational, and caregiving environments, as well as to inform policymakers and the public about the beneficial effects of manual textile creation within a group. The program seeks to fill the gap in researching the societal significance and effects of textile creation as psychosocial support on both Slovenian and international levels.
